


Day 6, Day 20

by Widowfics



Series: Varian and Whumptober 2020 [5]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: "Stop Please", Angst, Cass is really angry, Hurt Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider, Hurt No Comfort, Hurt Rapunzel, Hurt Varian, I'm just a freshman don't judge, Lost - Freeform, New Dream, OOC Cassandra, Set after a Tale of Two Sisters, Varian's technically not in this one, Whumptober 2020, but it's a two parter, he's in it now:), he's mentioned - Freeform, just read it you'll understand, no.6
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:55:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26864734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Widowfics/pseuds/Widowfics
Summary: When he doesn’t answer or move, Rapunzel raises an eyebrow in slight suspicion. She goes to take a step forward when a motion catches her attention. His hand drops from the handle and to his side, but he still doesn’t turn around or acknowledge her.“Eugene?” she calls slowly, confused.Finally, he faces her. Only one thought flashes through her mind as she stares into his eyes.No, Cass stop, please.Because blue, glowing ones stare back.orWhat if Varian and Eugene could also somehow be controlled by the Mind Trap?
Relationships: Cassandra & Rapunzel (Disney: Tangled), Cassandra & Zhan Tiri, Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Rapunzel & Varian (Disney)
Series: Varian and Whumptober 2020 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1940524
Comments: 20
Kudos: 98
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	1. Please...

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! So this is an idea I've had for a while and I may or may have stretched the prompt a bit to fit it...haha...  
> You may have noticed that the title says Day 6 and Day 20. That's because I'm splitting this into a two chapter fic and the second chapter really fits with Day 20's prompt (sorry, cliffhanger!) Also, Varian's not actually in this one besides being mentioned. Don't worry, he'll be in chapter 2:)  
> Anyways, without further ado, a really badly written fic!!!
> 
> PROMPTS I USED TODAY: "Stop, please" (sure...let's go with that)

Rapunzel wipes sweat from her forehead, leaning against Eugene as they observe their work. Each member of the Brotherhood is locked in individual dungeon cells, eyes still glowing that terrible blue. It had taken some time, but for now they stay restrained.

She had honestly thought the worst thing to happen today would be her former best friend leaving her to die in a cave full of poisonous gas. But it seemed Rapunzel’s escape had only made Cass angrier, if the sudden attacks from the Mind Trap controlled knights indicated anything. 

The sound of hands violently shaking bars yanks Rapunzel from her thoughts and causes her to jump a little. The sight of Quirin baring his teeth at them reminds her of his son, and how thankful he is not here to see his father like this. It also reminds her that she must find him and tell him as soon as possible, for fear of him panicking at the disappearance of the person he undoubtedly loves more than anyone. 

“We should probably go find Varian,” Eugene says, obviously thinking the same thing she is as he stares at Old Corona’s village leader. 

Rapunzel nods, noticing the way her boyfriend blatantly ignores his own father’s presence a few cells down. And while she knows they aren’t that close yet, she’s sure it hadn’t been the best experience to fight him. She can’t imagine having to fight either of her parents.

“I don’t think they’ll be getting out. This prison structure is too strong, even for them.” Rapunzel spares a glance at Adira and Hector, two people she hadn’t thought she would be seeing again, at least not so soon, and definitely not under such circumstances. Adira sits cross legged in the center and Hector paces, but they don’t look nearly as aggressive as before.

“And I don’t think Cass is in the right mental state to form any escape plans,” she adds, swallowing at the mention of Cassandra.

Eugene sighs, standing up straight as if prepared to leave. “Either way, I’ll get some more guards to come down here until....we figure out what to do.”

He begins to walk towards the exit door, but Rapunzel stays behind. She watches him get farther away from her, oblivious to the fact that his girlfriend is not following him. She hugs herself, just needing a minute to let everything process. The emotions she thought would overtake her have not come, but she’ll credit that to the enormous amount of shock going around at the moment.

She watches Eugene grab the door handle, expecting him to open it up. But instead he does nothing, body still, hand unmoving.

“It’s fine, Eugene,” Rapunzel tells him, assuming he has just noticed her absence. “Go on without me. I just need a minute.”

When he doesn’t answer or move, she raises an eyebrow in slight suspicion. She goes to take a step forward when a motion catches her attention. His hand drops from the handle and to his side, but he still doesn’t turn around or acknowledge her.

“Eugene?” she calls slowly, confused.

Finally, he faces her. Only one thought flashes through her mind as she stares into his eyes.

_ No, Cass stop,  _ **_please_ ** _. _

Because blue, glowing ones stare back.

~

Cassandra screams in frustration as Rapunzel and Eugene lock the last cell door, lock away her last chance at making the person who took her mother away, who stole her only memories and lied to her face, pay. She should’ve killed her where she stood, or should’ve taken over the kingdom by now. But now she doesn’t even have an army to do that with!

She grips the mind trap tightly, putting all of her anger into one last attempt at escaping and fighting, or  _ something _ .

But it’s no use; Rapunzel has defeated her, again.

“What’s wrong, Cassandra?”

Cassandra’s eyes snap up at the voice addressing her. The small girl she had forgotten lived in the tower too looks down at her from where she sits on the floor.

“Nothing,” she growls, not wanting to talk with anyone at the moment.

The girl seems to catch sight of the Mind Trap in Cassandra’s hands and her eyes narrow a bit.

“What are you doing?” she asks more demandingly.

Cassandra forgets her anger for a second, noticing her mentor’s expression. The last thing she needs is the girl’s judgment at her emotion filled mistake. 

“Nothing,” she repeats, this time with a more defensive edge. “I- I was just trying this thing out again, ok? You can’t expect me to control an entire army without any practice!”

“There  _ is  _ no army,” the girl retorts. Cassandra is about to question how she knows this, but she continues. “You have let your emotions get the better of you, and now you have lost your only way to defeat the Sundrop!”

Cassandra stands up, feeling a little more confident when she towers over the girl.

“Look, I’ve already told you I don’t  _ need  _ an army. I’m powerful enough to take down Corona on my own, and destroy Rapunzel once and for all.”

“Cassandra, if you were really able to do it all by yourself, then the Princess would be dead in that cave right now.”

Cassandra falls silent, seething on the inside but not able to come up with a response. Her rage blinds her from even wondering how the girl knew about the cave.

“Look, there is another way to get our soldiers back, and possibly break Rapunzel even further,” the girl starts, ending the silence.

“Yes…?” Cassandra draws, trying not to sound too eager at the chance of redeeming herself. 

“There are...others, that the Mind Trap can control,” the girl continues. “Others who have been sworn to the Moonstone, unaware of the oath.”

“Who?”

“Out of the four Brotherhood members, two had children. At both’s births, they received the duty to protect from their fathers. They can also be controlled, but it requires more focus and skill than usual. You can use them to sneak into the palace dungeons and free the others…”

Cassandra stares at the girl looking up at her, understanding all she implies. 

“...and Rapunzel wouldn’t be able to fight them,” she finishes. 

It’s true, Rapunzel wouldn’t be able to fight against Eugene  _ or  _ Varian, making this an almost flawless plan. 

Meaning the only problem left, is her.

Could she really use them like that? It would be extremely cruel to force Eugene into hurting one of the only people that really matters to him, and Varian, well, she had dragged him into so much already. 

“Is there something wrong, Cassandra?”

The girl’s voice breaks through her thoughts. Is there something wrong? She thinks there might be…

But then she remembers earlier that day. The way Rapunzel talked about their mother,  _ her  _ mother, the way she had pretended everything was ok, the way she had lied to her face when she found that mirror in her bag. 

A snarl forms on Cassandra’s face as she picks up the Mind Trap again, remembering how Rapunzel had gotten to go home to a loving family and country, while she had to go back to an empty tower, ripping down wanted posters the entire way. And suddenly, she doesn’t care who else gets involved, as long as her former “best friend”  _ hurts _ .

She closes her eyes, focusing on the energy radiating from the stone in her hands. At first she feels nothing but still trapped bodies. Then, reaching farther, she feels it: two available consciences. A smile replaces the snarl when she grabs a hold of the first one. She opens her eyes once more, but is not met with cold, black walls.

Instead, she sees Rapunzel.

And she looks  _ terrified _ .


	2. Toto, I Have a Feeling We're not in Kansas Anymore

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Cass.”
> 
> Maybe it’s just her desperation, but she swears she sees Eugene falter.
> 
> “Cass,” she tries again. “I know you can hear me!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey! I'm not late (again). two parters are the best cause all you gotta do is add a new chapter. posting a new work is such a pain:/ Anyways, hope you enjoy this! I know some of you have been waiting for it:)
> 
> PROMPTS I USED TODAY: lost (ya know...cause they lost their minds...k nvm I'm doing my best)

“Eu-Eugene!”

Rapunzel lifts her hands up, slowly backing away from the advancing figure of her boyfriend. She can’t tear her eyes away from his now blue ones, can’t feel anything but panic settling in her stomach.

“Eugene, it’s me,” she tries to plead; he ignores her (or he doesn’t hear her. She’s not sure).

Her back hits the bars of a cell, but through her dread-filled mind, she can’t even remember if it’s empty or full. She’s extremely aware of how cold the smooth floor is against her feet, and how hard her heart beats against her chest.

It’s obvious Eugene has no control right now, the way he walks towards her - as if a puppet with strings - sending shivers down her spine. And that glow, only serving to taunt her as it seems to get brighter with every step. And she realizes...he’s not stopping.

It’s time to try something else.

“Cass.”

Maybe it’s just her desperation, but she swears she sees Eugene falter.

“Cass,” she tries again. “I know you can hear me!”

Her words have the opposite effect she intended. Eugene suddenly launches himself at her, hands pinning her shoulders roughly against the bars. She yelps loudly, more in surprise than pain. His facial expression doesn’t change, but the rage behind the actions is unmistakable; Cass wants her revenge, and she wants it now.

Eugene pulls back a fist, almost hesitantly, but fear locks Rapunzel’s joints. It flies towards her face and she manages to pull away last second, wincing at the clang of metal right next to her ear. Her eyes widen and she holds back a shriek, but the action has caused something inside her to click. Face hardening, she brings up a leg, ramming it into her attacker’s chest with eighteen years of built up strength. 

He stumbles away from her, and she takes the chance to push away from the cell. But something stops her, and when she whips her head around, she sees it’s Hector, gripping the skirt of her dress through the bars and using his other hand to reach for the key in her belt. She instinctively grabs his wrist, twisting it painfully in the other direction until he lets go. Then she puts as much distance between her and any of the cells, grabbing the key and throwing it down the hallway, satisfied at the loud clatter it makes, now yards away.

The sound also draws Eugene’s attention back to the moment, and he jolts towards it. Already expecting this reaction, Rapunzel sticks her foot out, sending him crashing to the ground. What she doesn’t expect is for his arms to shoot out and grab a fistful of hair, bringing her down with him. She gasps, not able to catch herself before slamming into him. He uses the brief blunder to get the upper hand, twisting her over onto her back and trapping her under his body.

She groans, unable to move him away this time. Despite her over average power, a full grown man on top of her is too much. It doesn’t stop her from kicking and squirming in a last attempt, though. 

A last resort idea comes to mind, and she takes a deep breath. Bracing herself, she reels her head back, before smashing it into his.

It does the job, stunning him enough for her to wiggle out and quickly change positions. Now the one on top, she digs a knee into his stomach, biting her lip and trying not to think of the pain she’s causing. His breathing becomes shorter, but she knows it’s not enough. She knows it’s not enough to just restrain him. 

And she knows that was Cassandra’s plan.

Tears starting to trickle down her face, Rapunzel wraps her hands around Eugene’s throat. His eyes snap fully open, and for once, she’s glad they’re glowing blue, because she doesn’t know what she’d do if they were the familiar love filled chocolate ones she’s so used to gazing into. He resists, trying to claw her fingers off, but she only presses harder, choking on a sob.

“I’m sorry! Please, _please_. I’m sorry. You don’t deserve this,” she cries, even though she knows he can’t hear her. She doesn’t care.

Finally, after what seems like an eternity, his eyelids begin to droop. Soon, they slide shut, and the resisting hands fall limp. She lets go immediately, collapsing onto his now unconscious body and crying into his chest. The only comfort she finds is the way his heart beats, erratic at first, but slowly becoming steady.

She doesn’t even want to know what Cass is feeling on the other side. She doesn’t _care_. She-

“Rapunzel?” 

She snaps her head up, more than startled by the new voice. It takes a while to make out who the figure standing at the end of the hall is, her vision blurred by both tears and general unfocus. 

But when she does, she freezes.

“What- what happened?” Varian asks, looking almost as terrified as she is (where had he come from? When had he gotten here?). 

“What did you do to Eugene?!”

She opens her mouth, though she’s not sure how to respond to that question, when she realizes something.

Varian has the key in his hand.

“Put that down!” she screams, her subconscious already connecting the dots but her heart not able to accept it until there’s more proof. (She had already fought Eugene - already _hurt_ Eugene. Please, she couldn’t do it to Varian too.)

But the gears are already in place, and turning. His eyes are blue, his face is slack, and he’s moving. She jumps to her feet and rushes at him, but he’s too fast. By the time she reaches him, he’s already unlocked three cells, releasing three out of four warriors, who waste no time disappearing into the oncoming night. He’s about to put the key in the last lock, but she grabs his wrist, sending the key flying to the ground once again. Only this time, he doesn’t go for it. He doesn’t move, staying still in her grip, and staring at her. 

She breathes hard, thoughts trying to catch up with all her sudden actions. What does she do now? A glance to the side shows the person in the last cell is none other than the boy’s father. She almost loses it right there.

“CASS!” she screams instead, voice breaking. “Listen to me! Why are you doing this?!”

Nothing. For a moment, there’s silence, and Rapunzel is sure Cassandra is ignoring her again.

But then, the silence is broken. It’s Varian’s mouth moving, and Varian’s voice, but Rapunzel knows it’s Cassandra talking. And she doesn’t want to miss a word.

“Look at this kid, Rapunzel.” 

She reluctantly obeys, taking in Varian’s freckled face and shaggy hair, blue stripe hanging in front of his glowing blue eyes. She notices Cass’s tone is calm and level; whether or not it’s because of the Mind Trap or perhaps her initial anger is subsiding, she doesn’t know.

“He did terrible things, to both of us. He became a terrible person, but recently, I’ve come to see that maybe...it wasn’t all his fault.”

Rapunzel wants to say something back, but she manages to keep her mouth closed, letting Cass finish.

“It’s _yours_ . He did all those things because you lied to him. You lied to me, too, Rapunzel. And not just about the mirror today, but you’ve always lied. Our entire ‘friendship’ was a lie! You never cared about me, or how I felt, or what I _wanted_ . It was always about you! The trip was _your_ idea, we always did things _your_ way, it was all about finding _your_ destiny! Do you want me to go on?!”

By now, the emotion and anger from before has risen, along with Cass’s - Varian’s - voice. In fact, the boy trembles in Rapunzel’s grip. 

Rapunzel is speechless. Every word her former best friend directs at her is like a knife to her heart. None of them make sense, but they still hurt _so much_.

“So, what will it be?” Cass continues, as if trying to move on from her rant. “The kid has something in his pocket that will open this door in seconds. Are you going to stop him?”

“I can’t…” she responds on reflex. 

Varian’s bitter laugh fills the room, and Rapunzel winces. It reminds her of older, possibly darker times.

“Of course. Well, it’s not like it’s the first time you’ve kept him from saving his father.”

Suddenly, Varian’s other hand flashes in the corner of her eye. She gasps, instinctively yanking him away. Whatever he was holding falls. In response, he bites down on the hand still holding his wrist. She yells in pain as his teeth break skin. Using the distraction, he scrambles for the key, quickly grabbing it and getting ready to use it…

He stops when fingers grab his hair, and his head is abruptly rammed into the bars. In less than a second, he falls limp, Rapunzel letting go of his hair and catching him, gently lowering both of them to the ground. Violent sobs that have been building up for a while now finally makes themselves known. She holds his small body close, sobbing into it much like Eugene’s earlier.

Cass is gone, and Rapunzel fears in more ways than one.

She feels so alone, despite being surrounded by bodies. Bodies belonging to people she had promised to protect. Through everything, it leaves her with only one thought.

_Is_ she a liar?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> thx for reading!


End file.
